Event Details

Join us on January 17 as we host Ryan Smith CEO and Co-Founder of Qualtrics

Ryan Smith co-founded Qualtrics in 2002 with the goal of making sophisticated research simple. As CEO, he has led the company from a basement startup to one of the fastest-growing technology companies in the world, experiencing triple-digit growth in the past four years. Qualtrics has more than 4,800 customers including half of the Fortune 100, 1,300 colleges and universities worldwide, and 95 of the top 100 business schools.

In May 2012, Qualtrics announced a $70 million investment from Accel Partners and Sequoia Capital, the largest-ever joint investment by these two firms. The investment also marked the largest first-round funding for a software company since 2008.

Qualtrics was profiled in the June 2012 issue of Forbes, with the headline “Tech’s Best-Kept Secret is in Utah.” Ryan has also been featured in Fortune, The Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, TechCrunch, TheWall Street Journal, USA Today and is a popular speaker at the nation’s top business schools.

AGENDA

6:00 - Networking and Pizza

7:00 - Fireside Chat

8:00 - Questions and More Networking

WHAT IS STARTUP GRIND?

Startup Grind is a 30-city event series hosted in 13-countries that educates, inspires, and connects entrepreneurs. Rooted in the heart of Silicon Valley, Startup Grind brings the world's greatest founders and investors to tell their stories on stage and share it with our global startup community. There are brilliant entrepreneurs everywhere so start learning and networking with them at your local Startup Grind community.

For more information visit StartupGrind.com or follow us on twitter @StartupGrind.

Kyle Shields is currently pursuing a Master of Accountancy at Brigham Young University. A large portion of his time is devoted to learning the ins and outs of tax accountancy, but once the books are closed Kyle can be found working on some new entrepreneurial pursuit, or working with professors on research projects. After his studies, Kyle does business development for Ferevo, a mobile advertising startup that specializes in relevant advertising solutions.

Email: kshields@startupgrind.com | Twitter: @mrkyleshields

Derek Andersen - Founder of Startup Grind

Ryan will be interviewed by Startup Grind Founder Derek Andersen. Derek previously worked at Electronic Arts on games like The Godfather, Burnout, and Mirror's Edge. He left in 2009 to found Vaporware Labs, a company that has shipped such products as Startup Grind, Commonred, and Steve Young Football. He is a guest author for TechCrunch and Business Insider. He lives inwith his wife and two boys inPalo Alto California.